Family by Design

“That could change,” Sam suggested hopefully.

Maddie swallowed. That was about the scariest part of the whole venture.

J.C. was highly aware of Maddie’s reluctance. He’d all but dragged her from her house. Feeling like a used car salesman, he’d talked up the place during the short drive to Main Street. Now, he inserted the key in the lock. Unused since Jay’s death, the building seemed to echo with the loss. Jay’s employees had scattered. Some were old enough to retire, the rest had found other jobs when the company closed. Without Jay’s networking, the place would have crawled to a halt, so J.C. had chosen the only practical option.

Still, their footsteps rang in the emptiness.

“What happened to the equipment?” Maddie whispered.

“Sold it.” His voice seemed unnaturally loud in the quiet. Finding a multiple light switch, he flipped all the levers. Fluorescent lights glared overhead. Seeing Maddie wince, he turned all but one off. “You’d have to imagine it without the commercial additions.” He pointed toward the walls on the east side. “The original moldings are still in place. Jay updated the lighting and wiring for his business. But Wagner Hill House was built in the 1890s.”

Maddie glanced around uncertainly. “The wood floors are still good.” She stared upward at the ugly drop ceiling.

“The original’s still under those panels. Be easy to restore. Of course you have to look past the dust.”

Just then she sneezed.

“Way under the dust.”

“Seems more suited to a different sort of business.” She halted in front of a stack of boxes taller than she was. “Not really a tea shop sort of place.”

J.C. pointed to the original bay window that faced Main Street. “Picture it without the signs and printing displays. You could put up some kind of curtains, I imagine.”

“Hmm.” Maddie studied the large window. “European,” she murmured. “That’s the feel I always wanted. Plastered walls.”

Helpfully, he gestured toward the original plastered walls. “They’re still in good shape.”

“Maybe …”

“Plumbing’s good. You can reconfigure it however you want.”

Maddie frowned. “Sounds expensive.”

“That’s where your silent partner comes in.”

“I’d never be able to pay you back!”

“Look at it this way, Maddie. No matter who I rent to, I’m looking at renovations.”

She looked at him suspiciously. “Are you sure?”

“Yep. And the improvements are a write-off. Just clearing the rest of the junk out of here will make a big difference. You’ll see.”

Pivoting, she studied the space. “It would, actually.”

“Let’s take a look at the apartments. The elevator’s in the back and there are two sets of stairs, one up front and one in the rear.”

Reaching the front stairway, Maddie smoothed her hand over the curved bannister. “Lovely woodwork. Don’t see this in modern buildings.”